Flooding River
by Ennessee
Summary: Haytham had lead a cruel and hopeless life searching his father's killers. However, after meeting Ziio on the way to Southgate Fort, his life changes.
1. Beginning

The first time I met her I still didn't believe in love. The last memories I had of such feeling were lost in a faraway time, when my mother used to hold me and kiss me before bedtime. However, the affection had been drowned in blood the night of my tenth birthday, never to return. With time, I forgot what it meant to have someone who took care of me, who woke me up after a bad dream and made sure everything was fine. So I had blindly accepted the truth that I was destined to be loved by no one. After all, who could accept a life side by side with a ruthless killer, one who had forgotten how it feels like to have a home?

I was so lucky to be wrong.

Love. Such a short word, so much involved. Many people, through the years, have tried to explain it in many articulate words, but they were always wrong. All of them.

It was so much more than that.

* * *

Everything began on a convoy. As a Templar agent, it was my duty to take the reins of the cart we had just tore off from the red coats' possession.

"Sir. How can we know that these natives will help our cause?" asked me John as soon as I was seated on the rider's place.

"I will try and talk to this woman, if she understands English" I whispered to him.

"As you wish, sir. We will make sure no one follows"

While my men positioned themselves in hidden places in front and behind the convoy, I cleared my throat. 'God. Come on, man. It is just a woman' I told myself, 'you have done more difficult things. Much more difficult things'.

"We are here to help you, along with those held inside Southgate Fort" I said, taking position next to her. My voice came out a like a rattling sound. 'Shit'.

She made no reply. I looked at her for any signs of her understanding me.

"Free me" she said after a short while. I looked at her with surprise. Her voice was sweet but determined, like if she was accustomed to giving orders.

"Not until we are inside the gate. I can't chance an inspection at the gate going wrong". She turned away from me after a hateful look, hiding her feelings.

"I will see you safe. You have my word" Not wishing to appear impolite, I looked away from her.

"Do you know anything of Silas operation?" I dared again after a while. Truth be told, I felt a little shame in recognizing that it was the desire of hearing her words and not that of of gathering information that drove me.

No answer.

"You must be rather important to him if you were given your own escort" I commented, and waited. 'Patience. She will eventually speak her mind'. Instead, she looked at me with silent anger and a little hatred, which made my heart shrink.

"You are misreading me. I do wish to free you. But not now I cannot risk any inspection to the gate going wrong" I apologized.

'From when do I need to apologize to stranger women to feel at peace with myself?' I thought. It was not like me at all.

Shortly after, with a little relief and a little regret from my side, we reached the fort.

In those silent minutes I had been repeating myself the right things to say once arrived in order to convince this mysterious and beautiful creature to help us: a small group such as ours stood little chance if we were to face a massive attack from the soldiers. On the other hand, if the natives in the cart would prove themselves willing to lend a hand, all could have been over soon.

Once inside the gate, having passed the inspection with no difficulty, I jumped down from the cart. I had precious minutes before the others reached me. I was determined to use that time to speak with the natives.

 _First, the woman._

"Here, just as I promised" I begun, cutting the rope that had tied her wrists. I noticed that the fetter had left a red mark on tender tender skin and I instinctively grabbed her armpit to check on her wound. She looked up at me and we found ourselves staring at each other.

For a long instant our eyes were locked. I noticed her irises were dark, beautifully dark, and devoid of any fear as they scrutinized my soul. In her gaze there was not the venomous anger that had threatened my mental sanity just a few minutes before; instead, I saw courage.

My heart pounded in my ears with such ferocity that I barely heard the muffled sound of shoes behind us. But she did, and with it came the realization of the danger around us. So the beautiful woman gently withdrew her arm from my grip, jumped down the chart and ran away.

It had all happened so quickly that for a moment I doubted the reality of what I had lived through.

'I am an idiot. It is official' I declared to myself as Charles approached.

"Sir. Where is the woman that was sitting next to you?"

Thank God. He had not seen the pathetic scene I had been protagonist of.

"I freed her. We will do as well with her Mohawk brothers. Come, let us explain them our aim".

* * *

 **Thank you for reading! Please leave a comment if you enjoyed!**


	2. Progress

It did not take long for us to explain the natives what our intent was. To our surprise, all of them were able to speak English fluently, fact that added more esteem towards them.

"Well, that was unexpected" commented Charles as he freed the elder ones, "these people can speak our language better than Thomas does"

"Hey!" he replied, offended.

"Charles" I warned, "let us not waste time on useless banters. I will sneak in and free the captives. You need to blend in, distract the officers. The sooner this is over, the sooner we move on to our next mission. Understood?"

I saw all of my men nod, but it was too soon to be relieved by their commitment to the our cause. After all, I could not be sure that they would prove good enough for this. But, alas! that was all I had right then.

Sneaking in the camp proved to be an easy task. It was unbelievable how badly kept the fort was, considering that the king himself had founded and supported it as base of British trading operations.

'Slave trading' I reminded myself as I squat in a bush, waiting for a group of redcoats to pass by. And to think that people as clever and sensible as the Mohawks could be enslaved made my stomach twist.

When the group finally turned the bend, I rushed forward. I had no more than a couple of minutes before the next patrol approached, time during which I had to pry the stocks open and free the slaves-to-be.

Without wasting a moment, I ran to the captives and ejected a hammer I had brought along. The older prisoner looked up at me with weary eyes, like if he was expecting to be killed any moment.

"I am not here to harm you" I whispered, hitting the padlock forcefully. The lock clicked and fell to the ground with a low thump.

"Wait in the bushes. When I signal you, help me take down as many red coats as possible"

"Understood" they replied with confidence.

With a little more faith, I went back to my bush again and I took a look around. In the left corner of the corner stood a cage. There were at least ten men kept there, crammed in that tiny space like some wild beasts. It was my destination, I decided.

The cage stood in a rather exposed area. There were no bushes I could hide in, but not too far from the officers' tent (which stood just a few paces away from the captives) was a haystack. An enormous, yellow haystack. Perfect hiding.

As I made my way towards it, I mentally took note of the disposition of my allies. To my surprise, they had all blended in perfectly; they nonchalantly chatted with the read coats they were about to slaughter. Always if the Mohawks didn't give us away before.

Just as I had reached the other side of the encampment, I spotted a slender figure squatted on a tree. I immediately recognized her: it was the woman from the cart.

My heart began to race as she mindlessly jumped down from the branch she had been seated on and moved quickly towards her imprisoned companions. I caught my breath as she slid something inside the lock and opened the cage door without making any noise.

"You! I want to have a word with you!" yelled a voice behind me, and suddenly a rough hand grabbed my shoulder. I didn't have time to realize who was that had such urgency to talk to me, as I readily plunged my hidden blade in the speaker's voice.

"Oh, bother!" I said quietly to myself as I realised that the man's blood had soaked one of my sleeves.

I turned again towards the cage. To my disbelief, there were still men inside. The door, however, had been left ajar so that they could have made their escape any moment.

'Clever girl' I thought as I hid behind a heap of containers. 'She had a key. No noise, no trouble'. I had been sincerely stunned by her performance.

One after the other, I made my way up and down the fort, freeing slaves and scattering ammunition I found around so that the soldiers would not use it for later. At times I acknowledged the presence of the mysterious woman advancing ahead or behind me, but never coming close to me. not until we both got stuck by the same difficulty.

There was a ship anchored in the harbour, awaiting to be loaded with slave cargo. There were at least ten men onboard, but the vessel was so well guarded that even the thought of approaching it without a proper cover was ludicrous. It was when I had decided to risk it all with a direct approach that I heard the voice behind me.

"Don't lose your time by taking down the guards on the boarding bridge. Swim to the backside of the ship. Dive when you see the guards approaching" she whispered, and I quickly turned around to face her.

"Perfect timing" I commented, but she was already gone.

It did not take long after that. Killing a few inexperienced guards didn't prove a hard task, especially considering that most of them were dazzled by the fact that we were wearing uniforms as well. As I wielded my sword and parried the opponents' attempt to disarm me, I noticed that the Mohawk worriers fighting by our side did not aim to kill our opponents, but were rather interested in wound them so that they proved inefficient for battle. For a long moment, deep inside of me, I admired them.

By the time the fort was liberated, having the last group of soldiers surrendered, our group had gathered on the top of the fortress.

"This is exactly the kind of good work the Order requires" I congratulated with them, and then I detached from the congregation to rest. I leaned over the fort's balustrade, looking at the scene below. The natives were celebrating in their own way. They were gathered with their eyes closed and they seemed to mutter sounds I did not comprehend. Among the group I spotted the mystery woman.

'God, she is beautiful' I thought as I scrutinized her concentration. When the prayer was over, she opened her eyes again and began to give direction for the departure.

I looked at the group with admiration as they organized the supplied for the trip. It was absurd that so many people referred to the natives as 'savages'. During the time I had spent by their side, I had started to consider them more human that most of those who deem themselves civilized.

As the group finally walked towards the gate, the beautiful woman looked up and her eyes wondered on me. I straightened my back and puffed my chest a little bit as I reckoned she had recognized me. Holding my breath, I leaned forward again and I twisted my mouth in what I hoped looked like a charming smile.

It must have had an effect on her – I either looked like a pompous idiot or a charmer- because she smiled back. Her eyes were still fixed in mine. I exhaled slowly as she turned to face the road.

'I need to know her' I decided.


	3. Chase

**Here is a new chapter. I thank everyone who has left a comment and has encouraged me. It was of great support!**

* * *

I had never had a life plan which unrolled plainly in front of my eyes. Even though I rigorously planned every and each of the Order's move, no such thing existed for my private life. Maybe it was due to the fact that I was not used to settle down in a place for more than a couple months, and all the implications this brought: I had few or no acquaintances outside the Templars, there was no city I considered to be home. I was a host to many a country, a son to none of them.

And yet here I was now, in the heart of a foreign country, the furthest to England I had ever been, yet feeling like I had finally found a place where I belonged. This feeling of acceptance was new to me, and most unexpected. I had disembarked on Boston's docks expecting to feel like a fish out of water, but my thoughts proved to be wrong. There was much variety here, a heterogeneous mixture of cultures, races and tongues which offered the fascinating prospect of mingling up with the crowd, but without becoming part of the whole.

* * *

The Green Dragon's Tavern was dimly lit at night. It was usually in the evening that I would gather my team and discuss about what was our next move. After Southgate, however, I had waited a couple of days before calling a meeting.

"Gentlemen" I had greeted them while walking towards the table.

"Good evening" replied four people. The fifth-needless to say, was Thomas – burped in response.

"Thomas!" exclaimed Johnson, but I waved him to sit and let him be.

"Unbelievable. This retarded boor is useless to our cause" growled Charles.

"Mister Lee! Don't be offensive towards handicapped people" reproached him Church.

I sighed and then I sat down. "Please, calm down" I said plainly.

"What is it? Have some of the natives made contact with you?" asked John.

"No. Not at present. However, while on the cart, a Mohawk woman provided me with valuable information".

I looked at them to see how my statement had been received. They seemed interested. Good.

I took a deep breath, ready to shamefully keep lying to them, but Thomas interrupted me.

"Who? The sweetheart sitting by your side?"

I felt my cheeks heat up, but I managed to reply: "Exactly"

"What about her?"

"She told me to look for her. That she would tell me everything she knows about anything in exchange of being set free" Actually, I was quite sure she would have never begged me, not even if that was the only chance she had left.

"Well? What are we waiting for?" asked Charles, "Let's go look for her"

* * *

It didn't prove as easy as expected.

When it was clear to us that it would take more than a couple of days to trace the mystery woman back, most of the Templars began to find excuses to avoid work. It exhausted me, this behaviour. Persuade my men to act is something I hate: I have always thought that people must understand it themselves how duty comes before pleasure, because without hard work hardly anything good or pleasant can exist.

In the end, however, I felt almost grateful for their laziness, as it was only Charles and I that trotted towards the little town of Lexington, where my assistant had tracked her down. As I rode my horse, I could feel my heart beating faster, and the world around me, though covered in snow, looked colourful and exciting.

'How could it be that a woman I have seen for barely half an hour can have such an effect on me?' I asked myself. It had been a blast, really, like being struck in the face. After all, I was rarely wrong concerning people, and if someone made me a bad impression on a first encounter, there was little or no chance for me to change my mind. This time, though, the opposite had happened.

"Here she is" said Charles after a while. He interrupted the course of my thoughts, bringing me down onto Earth again.

"Stay here" I whispered as I dismounted from my horse and tethered it to a tree.

Carefully, I looked over the edge of the valley. And there she was, just a few feet from me.

I tuned my back and gestured Charles to stay put.

Too late.

A deafening noise echoed in the valley, causing flocks of birds to arise from nearby trees.

I shot a deadly look at Lee. "Go back to the others, Charles! Let me deal with this" I said as I began to run.

"But sir...!"

"No 'buts'!" I yelled, "go!"

And then the chase began. Useless to say, the deep coat of snow hindered my movements terribly, making me sweat and swear under my breath. In the meanwhile, the woman jumped effortlessly from a tree branch to the next, tiptoeing with agility among the trees. As it it was the most natural thing in the world. And maybe it was, but for her.

"Wait!" I shouted, "I only wish to talk!"

She made pig ears to my begging. As a matter of fact, she didn't even look down to me to see if I was still following, or if any of the wolves had eaten one of my legs already. After all, why should she? I was only a colonialist to her eyes. A selfish, soulless conqueror of her land. An intruder.

"Please!"

My feet began to feel limp, my legs felt swollen and bedraggled in snow. To worsen the situation, it had begun to snow again so that even the areas that a moment earlier had been free of snow were now being covered. I was completely hopeless. She knew the area like the palm of her hand, and I didn't: I had no chance of catching her. However, just as I had begun to slow down and catch my breath, she tripped on a tree root and fell.

'That's my only chance!' I told myself, and with one last effort I dragged myself towards her, who on the meanwhile had stopped and was scrutinising me attentively.

"Me. Haytham. I come in peace!" I exclaimed, half panting and half laughing. Oh my, this woman _was_ a hard bone.

"Why. Are. You. Speaking. So. Slow?" She replied with the same tone I had spoken to her.

"I am sorry. I am not used to chase after women. Not like this" I said, trying to look serious, but now there was a little smirk on her face.

"You're a fool" she stated with a disarming simplicity.

"I know".

"What do you want?"

Finally, I straightened my back and looked at her straight in the eye. And there it was, the sparkle that had struck me during our first meeting. It was burning in her pupil: it was will to fight, determination and strength of spirit.

"Your name. I mean, to begin with" I bit my tongue. If Charles had for some reason overheard this conversation, his compulsive admiration for me would have vanished in a flash.

'I am hardly straying from work. After all, I am just asking a new contact's name' I justified myself as confusion played across the woman's features.

"I am ..."

"What? Well, it is nice to meet you, ehm..." I tried to repeat her name, but failed.

"Just call me Ziio"

"Io"

"I have said _Ziio"_

"Ziio. God. I am sorry. That's an impossible name!"

"It doesn't justify your mispronunciation" she replied with a bothered expression.

"All right"

"It's like if I called you Haythem" she commented. _Clever girl_ I said to myself. So she remembered my name. Good.

I sighed. "You win. I hate when people call me like that"

"What is it you need from me?"

Reluctantly, I looked away from her and focused on my pocket instead. There was still a long way to go.

* * *

 **I hope you enjoyed! I** ** _had_** **to do that 'Haythem' reference!**


	4. Time for Uncomfortable Truths

The hill was nothing more than a small bulk on the edge of the valley. Just as Ziio had said, there was a very large and ancient tree sitting in the middle of it, with large branches tiredly supporting the fallen snow.

She was waiting, her back turned to me but her posture straight, attentive, like that of a predator. For a moment I lingered behind them and I admired her slim figure, the intricate pattern of her cloak, the blackness of her hair. For a moment, I wondered what those layers of fabric were hiding.

'I should be ashamed of myself. Yes, very ashamed indeed' I thought as I moved towards her. 'What would my mother ever think if she knew?' But then, she wouldn't. She was long dead, and even if she wasn't, I doubted she would have even cared.

"Here you are at last" greeted me Ziio as she saw me. Then, without wasting a minute, she explained. She told me that in the town of Lexington Braddock's men were waiting to begin their campaign against the French. First of all, however, his intent was to imprison the natives who dwelled on the territory and make a slave of those who refused to join his lines.

As she explained, I looked at her in the face. Her determination was clear, her eyes burned brightly as she focused on each word.

'So she is serious' I told myself. Was she asking for help, though? Did she want me to help her and her people?

I did not wait for her to tell me. I proposed myself.

"Then we should put a stop to it. Together" I said quickly. And I had never been more convinced of something in my life as I was of ending Edward's life in that precise moment. Not only was I going to spend some time with this formidable woman, but I was also going to put an end to the life of one of my greatest enemies. However, there was no excitement, no satisfaction in knowing that I was going to put an end to the life of that reckless individual. Quite the contrary: Braddock had in some ways been a friend to me, and even though I cannot say we had ever been in that good a relationship, he was one of the few men who once would have aided the Templar cause without objection. But it was too late now to hope for redemption.

Ziio looked at me. There was doubt in her eyes, but this time, I read some hope in there as well. Slowly, she nodded.

The first thing we had to do was to track down the General.

"So I suppose this is the reason why you are staying here. In Lexington, I mean" I began as we made our way down the hill. She didn't answer. Before I could repeat the question a second time, however, she silenced me without even opening her mouth.

Ziio leaned forward, as if to check the land down our feet. Then, she jumped. It was not an ordinary jump, not that of a hunter of a Mohawk anyway.

It was a leap of faith.

Ziio must have been involved with the Assassins.

My blood froze. I stared at her as she made her way out of the haystack she had fallen in and then she stopped to look at me. I swallowed hard, letting my surprise run down my throat, and then I did the same thing.

'After all', I told myself as I followed her, 'she has by most chance already seen my Assassin insignia on my forearm. Maybe she believes I am a Templar'.

Or maybe not. There was a Brotherhood in the colonies, and they were well aware of my presence here. But then again, if she knew I was a Templar, why hadn't she warned the Assassins?

'Maybe she likes something of me' I thought. 'No. Silly me. She just needs my help'.

I had just finished to mentally reproach myself when we arrived in front of a stinky-looking tavern.

"Some of Braddock's men come here each night" Ziio told me once we reached the entrance, "Let's see if we can get some information out of them".

And we did. After no more than an hour I learned that General Braddock was to be found at Fort St-Mathieu.

'Ridiculous' I thought as I made my way towards the door, "to name a fort after a saint'. Not that I ever was that religious. Nor merciful. Fact that I confirmed in the moment I accepted the provocation of one of Braddock's man and ended up beating a whole group of red coats down.

I did feel some regret later, when Ziio gripped my arm and forced me to sit down to a chair.

I was expecting a lecture. After all, I had seen it coming.

"You are hurt" she said instead, looking at a little scratch I had gotten on my cheek with a little worry.

"It's ... nothing" I replied. A side of me was willing to tell her about wounds far worse than that one. As always, however, I hushed. I simply looked at her as she stood up and snatched a wine bottle for a drunken man asleep on a chair nearby.

I watched her carefully as she imbued a napkin with the crimson liquid and gently pressed it on my face. While she did this, her eyes were caught mine. I blushed and looked away, but then I noticed she was still looking at me.

'This is the moment to show my courage' I thought, and I raised my eyes again. This time, our contact lasted a little bit longer, long enough for me to spot the fierce mixture of feelings burning in her gaze. Among the anxiety for the future and the worry for what to do next, I read something else, something deeper. Beside the flame of determination which always ignited her gaze, this time I saw sweetness. The wish of winning her people's war once and for all and to take care of other matters.

"We should move on" she said suddenly, standing up and diverting her gaze.

She was halfway through the door when I called her name.

"Ziio. We haven't discussed our next move" I chuckled.

"We should attend such matters... somewhere else" she said quietly.

"Right"

* * *

The so called 'somewhere else' happened to be the same camp where I had been about to be eaten up by wolves just a few hours before.

"Tell me the truth. You were amusing yourself seeing me in such distress, didn't you?" I asked her as I took seat on a fallen log nearby.

She raised her head from the place where she was trying to start a fire. "How can you say such a thing? Human beings should never take pleasure in seeing someone else suffer"

"I know. I was merely... joking" I said, suddenly ashamed of my stupidity. I should have tried harder than that, if I wanted to impress that woman. The question was... did I?

"So what have you learned?" she said, sitting on the other end of the log

"I have learned Braddock is marching out of Fort St. Mathieu by the end of this week" I said. My eyes got lost in the fire which was not crackling and popping in front of us.

"What is the matter with that?" she asked after a while. "You look... queer about this Braddock"

She was looking at me know. I allowed myself a sigh before straightening back up and explaining.

"Braddock and I were brothers, once. I served under him during the war, and he in turn was... he was more than a family friend. He was a brother"

"A Brother?" an enthusiastic grin appeared on her lips. Like an idiot, I smiled back.

"Well, yes"

"I knew it. I saw your hidden blades"

"I know" I said, not even caring to filter what I was saying. 'You are beautiful when you smile' I would have liked to say.

"Why didn't you tell me before? Kasegowase and Achilles never told me that a Brother was due to arrive from overseas"

 _Kasegowase. Achilles._

I felt every and each drop of blood freezing in my veins all at once. My smile dropped, and so did my posture.

'She is an Assassin ally' I realised with worry. There was never going a chance for us to work together, or even be friends.

"What is the matter?" she asked as her expression filled with doubt.

I took a deep breath.


	5. New Course

**I am sorry for the wait! I hope you enjoy.**

* * *

"I... I am not. I am not an Assassin" I said plainly, and I let my breath out in a long puff.

I looked at her attentively as she took the news in. Even though her expression did not change a bit, when she spoke her voice was full of apprehension.

"So how did you get the blades?"

"I killed an Assassin" I replied plainly.

Maybe it was my voice that made the news finally sink in, or maybe it was the atrocity I had just said. She stood up and took a few steps back.

"Oh, don't think your friends don't do that. It is not just the Templars' hands which are stained with blood" I said then. Truth was, her unexpected fear had set my nerves on the edge. I was used to people being intimidated by me, but not feel repulsion. Or hatred.

"Why didn't you tell me in the first place?" she said after a short hesitation.

"Well, I... I didn't know you were involved in this. But since it seems that this God-forsaken war is present in every and each part of my life, I... I suspect I have to tell you about it now" my eyes darted back to the fire as I repeated myself to remain cool, that the situation was under control. It wasn't.

So that's how I found myself sitting side-to-side with a beautiful Mohawk woman, telling her bits and pieces of my life, and especially, talking to her about my beliefs.

"After all, the Assassin and Templar morale are not so different. Quite the contrary, in fact; we both preach peace and law in the world. Only, they Assassins call this 'freedom' while we simply call it 'order'"

"How come you kill each other, then?" she asked. Her dark eyes were scrutinising my face, as if she expected to uncover a lie. Yet, I knew she had a little more confidence in me, now.

"Well, I have to say that my... colleagues haven't been very tolerant in the past. The war itself has roots so ancient that the reason of the conflict itself was lost in time. Today, we have it as a philosophical dispute. Once upon a time, it was much more than that"

"What could there be more than that?"

This time, I thought carefully before answering. Maybe she already knew about it all. Or maybe she didn't. Anyway, I chose to be on the safe side.

"There were some... relicts to be fought about. But that's just some old legend" I stood up, marking the matter as resolved. It wasn't for her, though.

"Is that what your precious amulet is about?" she asked abruptly. I instinctively brought my hand to my neck.

"It is" I whispered, and then I looked away. "So I imagine it is over. You will inform the Assassins about my presence here and ... well, we are done" Without knowing what to do, or to say to convince her to collaborate with me further, I decided right then and there that the only way I had to get away with my dignity was just marching back from where I came from. I would order William to contact some other tribe, they surely...

"Haytham" she called, and I was taken aback by the way she pronounced my name

"Yes?" I said simply, trying to look natural but feeling my cheeks heat up at once.

"I haven't said I want to end this"

"I see no reason why you would not"

"We still need your help"

"Of course you do. But given the nature of your alliances, and the state of fact in this circumstance, I deem it more appropriate to-"

"Stop!" she exclaimed, and to my surprise I found myself startling and looking away from her.

My comrades would have laughed so hard, had they seen me jump and look embarrassed and ashamed because of a five- foot-tall woman.

"Let us speak" she said resolutely.

"Very well. I am waiting"

Ziio puffed away a long breath. "I won't tell the Assassins. What I am asking you has nothing to do with your conflict"

"And why don't you ask them for help?" I demanded rather harshly.

"I have asked their help many times already" she said, but I felt like she wasn't telling me all the truth.

"And what will you explain them? How will you justify yourself when they discover that you have collaborated with their worst enemies? And how can I know this is not just a plot to end my life?" The questions came rushing down from my mouth like a cascade of water.

"You don't need to concern yourself with such matters" she replied plainly and with a knowing look. Then, as if she wanted to show me something, she added: "Achilles is a patient man. He will understand"

She turned her back at me and kicked some snow as she walked towards the log we had been sitting in. When she spoke again, I could tell she was mocking me. "About the ... 'plot'. Well, I really see no reason why I would make an attempt on your life"

"You wouldn't. But the Assassins would"

"You must be pretty important"

I almost felt like laughing. If I had died, I was not sure I would count a dozen people sitting at my funeral. "I am the Grand Master" I said in the end, "but for you, I will just... I will just be your ally. Your equal"

"Of course" she answered with a hint of insolence in her voice.

"tell me, do you have leaders in your tribe?" I asked her.

"We have a Clan Mother, Onià:ner" as she pronounced the Mohawk name, I could feel an immense sweetness in her voice.

"And do you not obey to her?"  
"Hardly ever" she whispered.

"I got an idea about that"

I hadn't considered that coming back to the tavern where my men were staying would take me more than an hour on horseback. During that time my mind was empty and I deemed myself extremely lucky to arrive to destination safe and sound. It was almost two o'clock in the morning as I lay on the bed, feeling exhausted. Had I been in London, or anywhere else in for that matter, I would have indulged on myself and slept with my clothes on. This time, however, I was in charge and I had to give an example.

'I can already see Charles' face as he finds me fully clothed in bed' I grunted as I kicked my boots off. To worsen the situation, things the events of the day were beginning to cloud my mind again, and with that came doubts, and unanswered questions. What made me behave like a fool? Why could I clearly see Ziio's face if I closed my eyes?

I fell asleep thinking about her face, her red lips and the big dark which looked at me with such curiosity that they made my stomach burn.

-  
As soon as I opened my eyes on the following day, I knew it was late. _Late_.

'Damn. I can only pray not to sound as clever as a drunk Hickey when I'll make my speech' I thought with a hint of fear.

As I moved frenetically around the room searching my clothes, the events I had so desperately trying to reason on came back to my mind all at once.

'My conduct has been unforgivable' I scolded myself as I angrily pulled my socks up, 'I should never have exposed myself in such a frivolous way'

Following to this conclusion, I stood up and pegan to walk in circles around the bed.

"Never again will I feel embarrassed in front of an ally. Work is work" I said out aloud, mimicking the gestures Reginald usually adopted when he scolded me.

"I will recover my lost dignity by... by... by never again talking to her unless strictly necessary" I carried on, but words were already failing me.

I could not deny that Ziio had a very strong charm, and that it acted on me.

I let myself fall on the bed and stared at the ceiling. I would have remained there all day if a sudden knock on the door hadn't startled me.

"Sir?" Oh my. It was only Omnipresent-Charles. That man was going to be the death of me.

"Charles" I sighted. I reassumed my business, authority tone and replayed: "I've been planning all day long my next move. I'll be off in about half an hour. Wait for me downstairs and I'll explain".

"Yes sir".

As soon as I heard his footsteps going away, I let my breath out in a long puff and sat straight on the bed.

It was time to go back to business.

* * *

 **I guess you have all heard what is happening in the world right now. Let's huddle together and pray for peace; it does not matter which God you pray to, or if you don't believe in a supreme being at all. Today, we are all French, all Syrian: we belong to any suffering nation. Let's not be blinded by fear! We are the world. We are the only one who can make this planet a better one.**


End file.
